2 journalers for this copy...

Inspiration running low? Just open The Writer's Block to any page and you'll find an idea, exercise, or photograph that will jump-start your imagination. It's chock full of great advice from legendary and contemporary writers.

Amazon.com "OK, so it's a gimmick. A book in the shape of a 3-inch block. It'll take up too much space on your bookshelf. Its 672 pages are unnumbered, making it nearly impossible to find the same one twice. It is full of contradictory advice. And once you've used the book a few times, it'll more closely resemble a splayed slinky than a block. So what? Author Jason Rekulak believes that inspiration "can be found anywhere--in dreams, highway billboards, newspaper personal ads, the Yellow Pages, restaurant menus, family photo albums, and bizarre morning TV talk shows." He has packed his stubby little book with kindling aplenty to ignite the fire of your writer's imagination. Open randomly to photographs and spark words ("traffic jam," "waiting," "hitchhiker," "prom"), writing challenges, and writing topics. "Chronicle the longest amount of time you've ever gone without sleeping," recommends one page. "Write about the biggest secret that you failed to keep," advises another. Describe "ten minutes that still make you cringe," urges a third. Write about one of the 300,000 Americans who consume at least 10 cups of coffee every day, or one of the 100 people who have registered with the Florida Department of Corrections to witness an execution, or one of the 3,500 members of the International Flat Earth Society. If none of that is enough to bump up your production rate, follow the lead of crime writer Charles Willeford. "Never allow yourself to take a leak in the morning until you've written a page," he says. "That way, you're guaranteed a page a day, and at the end of a year you have a novel." --Jane Steinberg

Book Description Inspiration Running Low? Is Your Muse out to Lunch? Need a Nudge to Channel Your Creativity?

Here’s the first book on writer’s block that’s packaged in the shape of a block—3" x 3" x 3"—with 672 pages and more than 200 photographs throughout. Next time you’re stuck, just flip open THE WRITER'S BLOCK to any page and you’ll find an idea or exercise that will jump-start your imagination. Many of these assignments come straight from the creative writing classes of celebrated novelists like Ethan Canin, Richard Price, Toni Morrison, and Kurt Vonnegut.

Within these pages, you’ll learn how Joyce Carol Oates uses running to destroy writer’s block. Elmore Leonard describes how he often finds ideas just by reading the newspaper. E. Annie Proulx discusses finding inspiration at garage sales. Isabel Allende tells why she always begins a new novel on January 8th. And John Irving explains why he prefers to write the last sentence first.

Fresh, fun, and irreverent, THE WRITER'S BLOCK also features advice from contemporary editors and literary agents, lessons from the awful novels of Joan Collins and Robert James Waller, a filmography of movies concerning writer’s block (i.e. The Shining, Barton Fink) and countless other surprises. With this handy little book at your side, you may never experience writer’s block again!"

This was part of my NSSFC pressie. I went through the book a few weeks ago and stuck small post it notes on pages that I felt I could use as journal prompts, or could perhaps use the general idea to journal about. Here they are:

Write about your pets

Visit a nearby cemetery and write about the most unusual grave you can find. ( I was planning on journaling with a genealogical theme)

Write about a time you have been lost

More than 10 million prescriptions are filled a year incorrectly, write about one of them ( I was going to use this about my pharmacy career)

superstitions & being superstitious

Describe the most boring job you have ever suffered through

write about a black sheep in your family (genealogical theme)

Trace the journey of a $5 or £5 bill, but through the lives of five different owners

in laws

Fertility

Write about a library or bookstore that has special significance to you

911

write about your favourite childhood toy

Describe the skeletons in your family's closet

Tell a story that centres about a recipe

Write about the most serious injury or health problem you have ever faced

Describe your most memorable family holiday and what made it special to you

Write about your earliest childhood memory

Sue Grafton

Adoption

Tidy up your desk

Vacation

Write about the most difficult phone call that you have ever had to make

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Write about a dream or goal you failed to achieve. What went wrong? and how did the experience change you?

Describe the clearest, most vivid memory of your childhood

Check your horoscope in today's paper

Write naked; when you sit to write what are you wearing? and do you journal it?

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